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Aleks Krotoski investigates sperm donors and the unofficial online fertility market.

Aleks Krotoski investigates sperm donors and why people put themselves and their future children at risk by going online to find them.

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Male Order: 10/12/2021

10/12/2021

BBC Radio 4 - Male Order, 10/12/2021Search BBC

Who is responsible for fixing the unregulated sperm donation market?

The unregulated sperm donation marketplace gives people the opportunity to create new families, but it opens the door for grifters. Who's job is it to make it safe for all?

In this second omnibus edition of her Male Order series, Dr Aleks Krotoski goes in search of the people or organisations who have it in their power to make the unlicensed, unregulated online sperm donor marketplace safe for all. 

She speaks with the donors who have the power to change the culture - if they choose to. She looks to the technology to see whether simple design tweaks could make it a more powerful tool. And she asks the moderators and admins of the Facebook Groups how they try to keep the bad apples out. 

But is this network too much of a wild west to reign it in? With the safety and wellbeing of everyone involved in mind, Aleks presses the companies and the regulators on how best to adapt the system for the benefit of all.

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10/12/2021

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